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A Recurring Theme – Recognition

by | Aug 26, 2022 | Open Leadership

The Power of Recognition

Often I find that in my numerous conversations with Clients, Mentees and others, certain themes tend to keep popping up for a while. It sometimes seem odd, but sometimes the same theme just keeps popping up in different contexts and situations.

At the moment one of those is Recognition, where the conversation typically is about people feeling they should be paid more. I often hear arguments reasoning why, eg comparisons to peers etc. However, whilst it can sometimes work to have a conversation with your boss and be that “squeaky wheel” that seeks to get the oil, it is not that common that just asking for more pay is going to get that for you.

What I have found myself talking about in both directions (to people seeking higher pay and to those being asked to give higher pay) is around the theme of recognition. Higher pay is a form of recognition, but what we mean by recognition goes way beyond being paid at parity to peers..

Let me take this from two directions, one from the Leader (company) perspective, and the other from the Employee perspective.

Leader

From the “Leader” standpoint, I often consider Dan Pink’s work from “Drive” that notes that beyond a certain level, what motivates people is three things:

  • Purpose
  • Mastery
  • Autonomy

(for more on this and to watch the short animated video around this, see this earlier post)

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company is undoubtedly a top “employer of choice” in the hotel industry, but they are known to not be among the highest payers. How does this happen? Simple. They understand that people will want to work for them as a) they have a great culture and a great place to work, and b) they invest heavily in learning and development for their people. In short, having a few years of employment with “RC” is great for the CV/Resume.

Key takeaways from that story? Ritz-Carlton can pay their people less than “top dollar” and still get highly motivated people. Why? Recognition, of their unique needs and abilities, that they want to learn and develop (etc etc). Recognition is about more than pay.

Companies do well when they consider recognition in a rounded way

Employee

Now, looking at this from the employee perspective, when I dig into the desire for higher pay, two additional things tend to come forward.

First, the individual is also interested in recognition in other ways, in the work they are given, the learning opportunities, the type of work, and the role and responsibilities assigned to them as they grow and learn.

Second, and this one is often a new thought to them, I ask them to consider “what additional value can you add to the company beyond what you are doing now?“.

Often people can be put in a “box” where the boss and company consider that their pay is set and immovable based on their job title, role and responsibilities., so if they can show they have stepped outside that box or changed the shape and size of the box, they may well be in a position to be recognised for that, then potentially to be paid more.

So, whether you are a Leader or an Employee, consider Recognition in different ways and, at all times, around the context of Value.